


Mark`s Story

by Hannibalatemysoul



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game), mark jefferson - Fandom, max - Fandom, rachael amber, victoria - Fandom
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-23
Updated: 2015-08-28
Packaged: 2018-04-16 20:07:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4638528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hannibalatemysoul/pseuds/Hannibalatemysoul
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Everyone in the LIS fandom knows the story and the point of view of Max Caulfield but Mark`s point of view we only know a little about.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. First Day Of A New Term

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, just a quick note. I take most of the conversations from the game dialogue. But some of it is made up and some scenes are not in the game. I don`t own the game myself which is a pain so I have to go through different YouTube video`s finding the whole dialogue from characters etc. Chapter 1, the scene between Jefferson and Victoria was especially difficult as most people would click on objects which made Max talk over what they were saying. I will admit that scene took me over 3 hours. If you do play the game and hear any extra dialogue in that scene or any of the scenes please let me know. Also thank you for reading and I hope to carry on with this.

I gazed at my watch as the sun shone through the blinds, my watch beeped as it reached 7am. Jesus Christ I'm so sick of shuffling through these photography assignments. It was getting harder to stay awake as it got brighter outside but sleep isn't my first priority right now .I readjusted my black and white framed glasses and continued marking the papers. I can`t handle this anymore, my head is pounding. I flung the papers into the desk and left the classroom to get a coffee.   
The hallways were eerie and voiceless as I made my way back to my classroom. I had just made it back to my classroom when principal Wells tapped my shoulder. He shot a sceptical look at me.  
“I see you're here early “. I grinned at Wells “Yes, yes I am I wanted to be ready for class and I had some assignments to catch up on”. “Ah I see. Anyway enjoy your class “. “I'll try “.   
Wells watched me as he went back into his office.  
I entered my classroom as I began to set up for class. Shit I need the darn photocopies of my photography.   
While at the photocopier the bell rang for class. “Damn I'm late “. I made no attempt to wait for the last print as I snatched the prints and sprinted to class. The class were waiting outside the classroom as I arrived. They didn’t seem as keen as I had expected but at least they turned up. I held up the papers in an attempt to show them why I was late. “Sorry guys sorry I had to get some extra prints”.  
No one made any effort to listen to what I was saying. They didn’t bombard into the classroom, their movements were more identical to snails. The class wasn’t an average size, there was about 8-10 people of both genders but more female dominate. Just as it normally was….   
I started the class by talking about Alfred Hitchcock and how he called his films “little pieces of time” but it could also mean that he was talking about photography, which he most likely was. I enjoy giving my class insights in how photography can be seen.   
“These pieces of time can frame us in our glory and our sorrow; from light to shadow; from colour to chiaroscuro “. I then asked the class to give me an example of a photographer who perfectly captured the human condition in black and white. The class was silent for a moment before Victoria`s hand shot up “Diane Arbus”.  
“There you go, Victoria! Why Arbus?”. Victoria once again jumped straight in with another answer “Because of her images of hopeless faces. You feel like, totally haunted by the eyes of those sad mothers and children”. There Victoria was again with her great knowledge on photography, I wish that every female student was like that.   
“She saw humanity as tortured, right? And frankly, its bullshit”.   
The class gasped like I’d just murdered someone right in front of them” Shh, keep that to yourself. Seriously though, I could frame any one of you in a dark corner, and capture you in a moment of desperation. And any one of you could do that to me. Isn't that too easy? Too obvious? What if Arbus chose to capture people at the height of their beauty or innocence? She had a brilliant eye, so she could have taken another approach.” The class stared at me blankly until I heard a clicking noise “shh, I believe Max has taken what you kids call a “selfie”… A dumb word for a wonderful photographic tradition. And Max… has a gift. Of course, as you all know, the photo portrait has been popular since the early 1800`s. Your generation was not the first to use images for selfie-expression. Sorry. I couldn`t resist. The point remains that the portraiture has always been a vital aspect of art, and photography, for as long as it’s been around“.  
Enough of my rambling it was time to ask Max about her so called “selfie”. “Now Max, since you’ve captured our interest and clearly want to join the conversation, can you please tell us the name of the process that gave birth to the first self-portraits?”. I didn’t expect quiet little Max to give such a great answer but she did! “The Daguerreian Process. Invented by a French painter… named Louis Daguerre. Around 1830.” I couldn’t have praised Max enough “Somebody has been reading as well as posing. Nice work, Max”. I knew that Victoria wouldn’t appreciate Max taking the spotlight for once and just as I foretold, Victoria sighed at Max. “The Daguerreian Process made portraiture hugely popular, mainly because it gave the subjects clear defined features. You can learn when you actually finish reading the assigned chapters”. Max deserves more credit than the two sentences I said “Max is so far, way ahead of everybody”.   
The bell rang to signal the end of class “And guys don’t forget the deadline to submit a photo in the “Everyday Heroes” contest. I`ll fly out with the winner to San Francisco where you’ll be feted by the art world. It`s great exposure and it can kickstart a career in photography”. Time to point out those under achieving in the class   
“So Stella and Alyssa, get it together. Taylor, don’t hide, I’m still waiting for you entry too. And yes Max, I see you pretending not to see me”. I wish she would hurry up and submit her photo, she has a great eye for photography. 

Before I could even get to my desk Victoria approached me asking me about how her entry could win, in other words how to bribe me. She started with an excuse about how she was too busy with the competition so she couldn’t do her homework “Yes Victoria you still have to do your homework this week, even if you’re submitting your photo into the competition, everybody in class is turning in a photo, so you see the dilemma”. “I know Mr Jefferson, I just worked so hard on this shot, and I’m sure you know what it’s like to be consumed by your work. I just really think every day hero’s is an important cultural event and I want to represent Blackwell academy.” “You have just by participating by putting yourself out there in the world. Now, no matter who wins this is just a bump on a bigger road. I don’t want anybody to feel excluded from this process but I also want everybody to know that this photographic world is not for everybody. I had my moment in the camera eye and everybody should have that chance, right?” Victoria jumped straight back into the conversation with another reply “Oh totally, I only want to share whatever gifts I have with the world “. Before I could reply to Victoria Max approached me “Excuse me, Mr Jefferson, can I talk to you for a moment?” Finally Max wanted to get involved with the contest. “Yes, excuse you”. I wish Victoria would understand that there is more to life than her. “No Victoria, excuse us. I`d never let one of photography’s future stars avoid handing in her picture”. I hope Max would understand by this that I have high potential for her career. “I’m on top of it. I think John Lennon once said that `Life is what happens while you’re busy making other plans`”. Holy smoke! Was that a John Lennon quote from Max Caulfield? “Max, you`re on fire today. All the right answers. Good. Make sure you finish working on it by today. I have faith in you “. Max gave me a small smile before she left the classroom. Victoria glared at Max as she left but Max didn’t seem to notice and I’m glad she didn’t, she needs to be working on her entry not her relationship with Victoria. “Okay Victoria, that’s enough for today it`s time you went to find your friends”. Victoria didn’t seem too happy with this, her posture changed and she gave me a disheartened look “But Mr Jefferson I need to win for Blackwell`s sake”. Who was she kidding? For Blackwell`s sake, more like her own reputation. I held the door open for her “Time to leave Victoria”. She picked up her notes and her bag as she walked out of the door. “Bye Mr Jefferson. See you next time”. She blew a kiss as she left. What was she playing at? I didn’t need another Rachael Amber. I shut the door and went and sat at my desk. 

It took me a moment but I realised that sitting right there a few tables back was Kate Marsh. Kate had had an extremely hard time lately with a video of her being published showing her high or drunk or even both. Kate came from a heavily influenced Christian background and it’s easy to guess with the gold cross she wears around her neck. Every teacher without a doubt knows about Kate` s personal life. Her father is a preacher and her mother is a devoted Christian just like Kate. Ever since that video of her was published, she’s become silent and will never speak in class. I got up from my desk as I came over to hers and sat on it. Kate was staring at her notes not acknowledging my presence. “Hey Kate how are you doing? Are you entering a photo in the contest?” Kate continued to look at her notes as she spoke. “Hi Mr Jefferson, If I told you how I was doing it would only make me feel worse. Yes it`s here under my notes”. Kate reached under her book and pulled out a photo of a firefighter helping an elderly woman and a young boy. I held the photo in my hands “Wow Kate, this is amazing! You can just catch the emotion on the faces and how it must have felt being there at that exact moment in time”. Kate looked up at me and smiled. I hadn’t seen Kate Marsh smile in over a month. “You really like It Mr Jefferson? I was passing by with my camera when I saw the incident happening luckily no one was hurt but as you said it made a great shot”. Once Kate had stopped talking about her picture, her face fell to sorrow. I placed my hand on her shoulder “If you ever need someone to talk to Kate, I’m here”. She shook my hand off her shoulder and she got her bag from under the table. “I’ve got to go. I have some work to catch up on”. Before I could stop her she was gone. What was I going to do with poor Kate Marsh?


	2. Vulnerable

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mark is alone in his classroom and that means he is alone with his killer thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not full chapter as still editing same with the summary

With class over and Kate gone, I began to contemplate on what to do. I left my desk and made my way over to the back of the classroom. Laying on the floor were 3 white tripods, Blackwell were very generous with the equipment they gave to the photography department and that also meant that I could take the equipment for my own recreational use. I looked up to the photos on the back wall, I delicately held the class photo that I took at the start of the year in my hand. Sat at the front was Victoria and the other classmates with Max a little behind and Kate was alone at the back. Kate seemed to be alone a lot of the time in class and out of class. I know that Max talks to her from time to time but I would class them more as acquaintances than friends. I think that Kate would be a good subject for my next project but my only worry is would she be able to handle it. I mean she has become vulnerable since that video and with not that many people caring about her, I doubt many would even notice if she disappeared. It`s not always my intention to kill but I do want to photograph them in their most venerable state. My only query is has Kate reached a state which is too vulnerable and too obvious?   
I got the other subjects to reach out to me with their problems which made it easier to get close to them but Kate hasn’t tried to reach out to me yet, which I need her to do. For now I will just have to continue trying to get close to her. I stuck the photograph back on the wall and I sat where Kate once had. On the floor there was a small paper ball scrunched up, I reached down and picked it up. It read “Dear Kate, we love your porn video! Xoxo Blackwell academy”.


End file.
